Descience — De-Vote!

LONDON, United Kingdom — In the past five months we have discovered a whole new world of science and fashion through our series of Descience articles. We have been exposed to unique scientific research, abstract yet fascinating images and most importantly, we have had the opportunity to see flourishing the collaboration of 60 contending teams that, through their interpretation of science and cutting edge research, have pulled together beautiful and functional garments. They are now ready to be exhibited and judged on the Descience Runaway 2014 providing the perfect platform for two worlds that have been successfully fused to synergise the efforts of these talented artists and scientists.

Descience Runway 2014 will take place on 29th September 2014 at the MIT Media Lab in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Each team’s design will be featured in a live runway show. Fifteen of the looks will be chosen as finalists and then be featured in a final runway walk. Models will then display these looks for guests and judges during a glamorous reception.

The Big Decision

The judges of this project: Dr. Jack W. Szostak PhD from Harvard Medical School and a Nobel Prize winner for Physiology and Medicine in 2009, Architect and Designer Neri Oxman, considered the leader of the biological revolution in design, Francesca Amfitheatrof, Design Director at Tiffany & Co, Dr. Sangeeta Bhatia, M.D., Ph.D. from the MIT Koch Institute and one the 10 most influential women in biotech, and Jay Calderin, Executive Director from Boston Fashion Week, will choose a winning team, each member of which will receive $1,500.

The judges received the participants’ work (images of the collaboration process, science and final look) for evaluation during the first week of August. At the moment, all the teams’ final styles are being shipped to Cambridge, MA and on 15th September the finalists will be announced.

The judges will be looking at many different aspects including how well the design reflects its scientific significance and the quality of the collaboration. Another important judging criteria will be the wearability of the garment; did the team make use of the body’s shape and movement? Finally the judges will, of course, be looking at the quality of the execution and the actual impact of the garment on the runway.

Team OrphaCure, Final Look. Photographed by Nicki Lazaridou.

Team OrphaCure, Final Look. Photographed by Nicki Lazaridou.

Have your say!

The aim of this project is to share the collaborative process of individual teams with the world and now we can all get the chance to be involved directly and vote for our favourite team through the Online Vote. This will determine the “People’s Choice” of Descience where each member of the winning team will receive $500. Patricia Torregrosa, Descience Science Director enthusiastically comments:

The online vote will spread the word about the vision of Descience, which intends to promote public awareness of important scientific discoveries as well as highlight extraordinary design talent.

Team Cheval Noir, Final look. Photographed by Amy Leu.

Team Interwoven, Final Look. Photographed by Andrew Loreaux.

Team Cryptic, Final Look. Photographed by Tom Higgs.

Clarie Jarvis, Descience Fashion Director adds: “Our teams have amazing stories to share about scientific research, interdisciplinary collaboration and their creative processes. This voting campaign allows us to share their journey with the public.”

“Connecting great minds from the diverse disciplines of fashion and science has been an amazing learning experience,” recall the Descience Team. “We were expecting great things to happen from these collaborations, but the outcomes have surpassed even those expectations. By looking at the final garments, we understand that designers are thinking about science while creating, and scientists have been challenged to express their research through artistic means.”

Team Nebulous Structure, Final Look.

Team Marrow and Thread, Final Look. Photographed by Rob Fatal.

Team Photonic T Bone, Final Look. Photographed by Dan Minicucci.

The styles will be featured in a final runway walk during the after party following the event on 29th September and then showcased together with the “People’s Choice” winning team’s look in a second runway show at the Liberty Hotel on 23rd October.

So what are you waiting for? “Your vote is important. Help us spread the word about life changing science and inspire others to learn, create and innovate!” says the Descience Team while its Executive Director, Dr. Yuly Fuentes-Medel concludes: “Online voting gives the participants the opportunity to show the results of their collaborations to the world and inspire others to create new innovations through their interdisciplinary work.”

The online voting for the “People’s Choice” finishes on 26th September, so head over to the Descience website and vote for your favourite look and do not forget to support the good cause behind the Descience Project.

Hyperactive perfectionist, vintage lover and working mother, coordinates and directs content across The FG Magazine. Comes from everywhere and nowhere; educated in six different countries with a MALD in International Security and a career in management consultancy.

Comments

The name of the team that created the image at the top of the page is: Team Invasive Species. The design team is Barbara Poole and Amanda James. You can vote for our submission at http://goo.gl/MLaR2d or on your mobile phone you can send a text to 313131 and type the word: gown in the message (you will be directed to my voting page) . You can see all the images on my website at: http://www.bfelt.com.